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A delegation from the Energy Charter Secretariat travelled to Nepal and Bangladesh to support the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) accession process of countries in that region. During the week of 18-24 November 2019, Secretariat officials contributed to a seminar on Resource Integration in Central Asia and its Impact on South Asia, which was organised by the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung in Kathmandu, Nepal. The seminar included the participation of over 30 experts and aimed to evaluate prospects for...

Due to the devastating earthquake that struck Albania on the 26 of November, and the continuing aftershocks, Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama has declared a state of emergency. 

On 20 November 2019, the Singapore office of the Permanent Court of Arbitration hosted an international event promoting awareness about the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) in South East Asia. The event was held in cooperation with the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce, Singapore International Arbitration Centre and the Ministry of Law of Singapore. Under the headline, Th...

On 14-15 November 2019, a delegation from the Energy Charter Secretariat conducted a working visit to the Kingdom of Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) in support of the country’s accession process to the Energy Charter Treaty. Eswatini became an Observer to the Energy Charter Conference in December 2015, following its signature of the International Energy Charter declaration, and was invited by the Conference to accede to the Treaty in November 2018. It is currently in the ratification stage of...

On 19 November 2019, the EU4Energy Governance Project held a Capacity-building Seminar on Electricity Grid Code Connection Rules for Renewable Energy Generators. The objective is to increase knowledge on EU and international practices for renewable energy grid connection. A guideline for setting up minimum standards and technical requirements for renewable energy connection was developed specifically for Belarus and presented during the seminar.

The 4th edition of the Investment Arbitration Masterclass organised in Brussels by the Legal Affairs unit of the Energy Charter Secretariat concluded after four intense days (4-7 November 2019). The interactive exercises were focused on providing 20 government officials (from 10 countries and the European Commission) and legal practitioners with hands on training (including mock exercises) about the practicalities and intricacies of the investment arbitration process, the assessment of damages...

The Secretariat regrets to announce the loss of a former colleague Ms Galina Romanova, who sadly passed away on 10 November 2019 in Moscow, the Russian Federation.

On 6 November 2019, the highest decision-making body of the International Energy Charter – the Energy Charter Conference (the Conference) – approved mandate, procedural issues and timeline for negotiations on modernisation of the Energy Charter Treaty (the ECT). 

OPEC, OPEC’s Fund for International Development (OFID) and the Energy Charter Secretariat (ECS) hosted a two-day workshop at the seat of OPEC, in Vienna Austria on 30-31 October 2019. It was opened by the OPEC Secretary General Mohammed Barkindo who emphasised the synergies and the importance of stronger collaboration among the institutions in light of the common challenges. In his speech Mr Barkindo thanked Energy Charter Secretary General Dr Urban Rusnák for his support for the event and...

The 2019 edition of the Investment Arbitration Masterclass is an interactive training that will guide the participants through the main stages of investment arbitration under the rules of the Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC), the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). The training will also include comprehensive coverage of the complex topic of determination of damages and strategic...

On 23-24 October 2019, the Ministry of Energy of Azerbaijan and the International Energy Charter jointly organised the Baku International Energy Charter Forum in Azerbaijan on the topic of “Enabling Energy Transformation through Technology and Policy Innovations”. Almost 200 participants, including Ministers, high-level officials and leading experts from Member and Observer countries, international organisations, the energy industry and academia participated in the Forum.

Information about the claims has been compiled on the basis of public sources, including specialised reporting services. Since 2001, when the first case invoking the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) was registered, the Energy Charter Secretariat tracked 128 publicly known investment arbitration cases where the ECT was invoked (sometimes together with a BIT).

On 17 October 2019, EU4Energy and the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure of Armenia organised the first meeting of the Building Energy Efficiency Task Force. Deputy Minister Hakob Vardanyan opened the meeting.

On September 16 2019, the International Energy Charter participated in the Second Steering Committee meeting of the Programme for Improving the Governance of the Energy Sector (AGoSE) of the ECOWAS Member States, which took place in Abuja, Nigeria. The Energy Charter Secretariat has developed a track record of cooperation with ECOWAS (ie, the Economic Cooperation Organisation of West African States) in recent years, since a number of the countries from West Africa are currently in the process of...

The Third Annual Belt Road Initiative Seminar and Training Program concluded in Beijing on September 26, 2019, with the Energy Charter Secretariat once again contributing to the proceedings of this international gathering. This year’s seminar was combined with the 8th annual edition of the Global Energy Security Forum, a high-profile international platform for evaluating the core energy and climate related challenges at the global level. China is rapidly developing itself as a leading platform...